Once again, a tragedy in the NFL raises major questions about the sport.
The suicide and murder committed by Jovan Belcher, a starting linebacker for the Kansas City Chiefs, this past weekend has set the NFL into shock. Though the game was played on Sunday, which ended up being a rare win for the Chiefs, it is important to remember that this rises far above the base of winning and losing. Everyone is asking themselves what went wrong? How could a man, who by all accounts seemed normal and happy, turn a gun on himself and his girlfriend, leaving their three month old daughter parentless?
Football is a demanding, year round, sport. It takes an enormous toll both mentally and physically, as both players and coaches must put in long hours, often as many as 60 a week. It is not unusual for players and coaches to arrive at the facility around nine in the morning and not leave until after nine at night. We all admire the stories about coaches working so late that they simply sleep in their offices. But what many people don't see is the toll this isolation and dedication takes on the coaches and players themselves. They are human and all the time spent away from family and friends can damage important relationships. Many of us know the story about Urban Meyer, who walked away from coaching because his family was denigrating Before he returned to coaching, his daughter made him sign a contact that included many items such as not working past certain hours, being home with his family for dinner and not letting the team and the drive to win take over their family life. Urban Meyer is a public example of what happens behind the scenes.
Even away from the spotlight, these demands are present. I remember this Halloween, which fell on a Wednesday this year, after practice when I had just finished my work with film. One of the coaches had asked about my progress, so I went across the hall to tell him I was done. When I arrived, I saw he seemed unusually quiet. When I asked what was wrong, he simply replied, "My daughters are out trick or treating right now." Coaching, and on the NFL level when players begin to have their own families, takes away these simple events that many take for granted.
Besides the time commitment, for players, the mental cost is well documented, coming to light recently last year when former San Diego Chargers linebacker Junior Seau committed suicide without warning. Unfortunately, this is an all too common event among former players. If you trail back through NFL history, you'll find suicides and major mental damages going back as long as the sport has been played. More and more, concussions and other brain damage acquired while playing football has been understood to cause these problems later in life. Seau requested that his brain be studied for post playing damage. Even in the last collective bargaining agreement, the players union demanded that one million dollars be set aside for research on the subject.
While better helmets and procedures do help, the culture has not changed. Players continue to hide concussions and the culture of play through pain is rampant on every level of football. In players' minds, there is always something to be gained by playing, no matter what the cost. A college scholarship, a bigger contract or a starting spot. As long as there are gains, players will continue to hide injuries. This damage cannot be reversed.
No one will ever truly know what snapped in Jovan Belcher's head. Whether it was one of the two causes above, or something else entirely, no one will ever know. And perhaps even knowing wouldn't bring comfort. It can't bring back the two lives that were lost. All that those grieving can do is try to slowly heal. People say that football is a game. It is not. It is a lifestyle, a commitment and a demand. Yet, it should be just a game. I've worked in football programs for five seasons, both on the high school and collegiate level. I see the strain it puts on everyone involved; the long hours, travel time and effort involved. All levels of football need to step back and ask themselves, "Is it worth it?"
I believe Brady Quinn summed it up the best. In the post game conference he told the media, "I know when it happened, I was sitting and, in my head, thinking what I could have done differently. When you ask someone how they are doing, do you really mean it? When you answer someone back (with) how you are doing, are you really telling the truth? We live in a society of social networks, with Twitter pages and Facebook, and that's fine, but we have contact with our work associates, our family, our friends, and it seems like half the time, we are more preoccupied with our phone and other things going on instead of the actual relationships that we have right in front of us." In today's modern society, even beyond football, everyone should step back and ask themselves this.
In a time when everyone is asking why, the NFL needs to step up as a league and attempt to decide if the rising costs are worth it. Asking the players to come in for more and more off season meetings, driving the coaches to work longer hours or putting winning above the people who play, are these things worth the cost? Belcher, Seau and their predecessors are trying to send a message and no one seemed ready to listen. Why? Because it costs money? Because it might cost quality of the league? Because no one wants to admit that the league isn't flawless?
Food for thought in a world that constantly asks 'what can you do for me?' rather than 'what can we do for each other?'.
If you would like to read more about the Chiefs' story and how they coped, this is an excellent article. The Chiefs Cope
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